[1] According to Turkish folklore, she had been living in a neighborhood of Erzurum called Aziziye that was close to an important fortification defending the city.

On the night of 7 November 1877, Nene Hatun's older brother Hasan, who returned home badly wounded, died.

In the morning when the news of the Russian capture of Fort of Aziziye was heard, she kissed her dead brother's head and took an oath to avenge his death.

She left her newborn baby girl and 3 year old son, Yusuf, at home, joining the counterattack against Aziziye with her dead brother's rifle and her hatchet.

Hundreds of Turkish civilians were killed by Russian gunfire[citation needed] but their numbers were so overwhelming they managed to enter the fortifications by breaking down its iron doors.